Palouse Falls - Unique Historic Site and Waterfalls with Ancient Rocks in Washington State

Palouse Falls is located near Washtucna, Washington. This is one very unique place for hiking, camping or picnic. Most of the rocks at Palouse Falls are part of voluminous basaltic outpouring of magma which erupted approximately 15 million years ago.

Before “Palouse Falls” this place used to be called "Aputapat". The name was changed to commemorate the Palouse Indian culture.

According to a story of the Palouse tribe, the Palouse River once flowed smoothly into the Snake, but four giant brothers, in pursuit of a mythic creature called "Big Beaver," speared the great creature five times. Each time Big Beaver was wounded, he gouged the canyon walls, causing the river to bend and change. The fifth time he was speared, he fought the brothers valiantly and tore out a huge canyon. The river tumbled over a cliff at this point to become Palouse Falls. The jagged canyon walls show the deep marks of Big Beaver's claws.

When I came there I was astonished how massive and breathtaking everything looks. Pictures don’t show it all. This is a great place for photography and just having a good time. There is a 2.6 miles (4.2 km) trail with 524 feet (159.7 m) elevation gain. If you decide to go to a hiking trail, make sure you don't do any shortcuts because the area might be dangerous (some people actually fell and died). Also, this area is known for rattlesnakes and yellow bellied marmots.

Source

@communitynews @ella-kay